Cristy Li

Floyd & Violet Hartwig, Married for 67 Yrs Died While Holding Hands
Image: NY Post@Twitter

(OC Register) “They weren’t fancy, they were just decent people that were always committed to each other no matter the situation,” that is how Donna Scharton from Fresno, remembers her beloved parents before they passed away earlier this month.

Prior to their declining health, the Hartwig’s owned a ranch in Easton, California. According to ABC News the couple met while in grammar school and had developed a relationship upon Floyd’s return from the Navy.

The Hartwig’s that had been married for 67 years died in their home–as the two laid close to one another. Scharton and other family members pushed their beds close together as they all knew the end was near.

“I remember them kissing each other good-bye every morning. I remember my Mom called him ‘Blondie’ because he had such pretty blond hair and blue eyes,” Scharton said, holding onto warm memories of her parents.

“My Mom had dementia for the last several years and around the holidays we noticed she was going down,” Scharton said. “Then I got a call from the doctor saying, ‘Your Dad has kidney failure and he has two weeks to live.’ So we decided to put them in hospice together.”

“We could tell that my Dad was in a lot more pain,” Scharton cried, “We said, ‘Its getting close,’ so we pushed the hospital beds together as far as we could. We put their hands together and my Dad died holding my Mom’s hand. Mom was not coherent but we told her that Dad had passed away and that he was waiting for her, she died five hours later.” 

Scharton daughter Cynthia Letson remembers her Grandparents as simple people who just loved having their family beside them.

“They never asked for anything, all they ever wanted was their family and it was amazing they got that in the end,’ Letson said.

Full article here from ABC News